A Decision
by shitpostaesthetic
Summary: Zeke oneshot. (not as dramatic as the title makes it seem it's all fluff)


He was going to do it. He had wrestled with the idea for months, and each time until now he had put away the thought for fear of upsetting his best friend. There shouldn't be anything wrong with it-all he was going to do was eat at a restaurant. He just wanted a burger, there was nothing wrong with that. Was he going to eat at Bob's Burgers to see a certain dark-haired, bespectacled girl? Absolutely not. At least, that was what he made his alibi in case Jimmy questioned his motives. He walked down the sidewalk, staring at the cracks in the concrete. The sun beat down on him, making him sweat from both nerves and the sweltering heat.

He had known he liked Tina from the beginning. He had denied it quite often, but once he began literally shitting around the school to get the girl more attention on her own school broadcast, he realized that he was in deep. He would never do anything about it, though. No matter how much Jimmy Jr protested, it was obvious he liked Tina too. While he didn't seem to reciprocate her feelings towards him to her face, he would always get jealous whenever she showed an interest in other boys. That always frustrated Zeke. He didn't understand how he could be so rude when she liked him, but once she didn't, he would try his hardest to get her back on his side. Did he not care about her happiness? She deserved so much and he gave her dirt. Still, Jimmy was Zeke's best friend, so he kept his mouth shut. This was different, it wasn't about that. He was just going to eat at a restaurant. That was all. Right?

A breeze brushed his hair back, cooling him down a little. From where he stood, the Pesto restaurant was in full view. His stomach twisted up into knots. He shouldn't be doing this. Maybe he could just keep walking? He was familiar with the neighbourhood; he and Jimmy would go exploring when Jimmy got into fights with his dad. He knew where to go. Passing the mortician's, he walked slower. He felt like such an awful friend. If Jimmy knew what he was doing, would he talk to him again? Stopping in front of the door, he held his breath, staring up at the sign. He wiped his sweaty palms on his shorts. He was just going to eat at a restaurant. Nothing wrong. He swallowed his fear and pushed open the door. The bell rang out.

Louise, the youngest Belcher, looked up from wiping tables. She seemed surprised, though that could be because Bob's Burgers was not the most popular burger place in town. He gave her a lopsided grin.

"Zeke? What the hell are you doing here?" She set down her towel and spray bottle, turning to him.

"Well, this is a restaurant, it's noon. Shoot me a guess."

"Yeah, but this restaurant sucks. Why don't you just go the Pestos's?"

"The burgers there suck, I'm in the mood for a good one," Walking towards the counter, he looked up towards the Burger of the Day, "What the hell is a Tickle Me Pink Burger?"

"Comes with pickles that we dyed pink and a pink crayon, if you're up for that."

"I ain't much of an artist, squirt. What else ya got?"

Louise turned back to her chore, no longer interested in the interaction, "Not my job."

The stool creaked as Zeke took a seat, adjusting to its new weight. He fiddled with his thumbs, this was absolutely a bad idea. Was it too late to leave? Maybe he could pull out his cell phone, fake an emergency. Maybe his cousin just broke his leg. His grandma had already had surgery, he couldn't use that again. His stepmom got mad at him a lot, that would be believable. He looked out the window, the Pesto restaurant reminding him of his betrayal. His stomach twisted, he hated this. The back door swung open, startling the boy. Walking out, Tina stared at the notepad in her hand. Even in her work clothes, with a spot of ketchup on her cheek, he still turned beet red. She looked up, laying her eyes on Zeke. She looked confused, then agitated. Her eyes clouded with harshness.

"Zeke?"

"Hey girl!" His face got even redder, he felt like such a mess.

Walking behind the counter, Tina bent down to grab him a menu, "Shouldn't you be at Jimmy's restaurant?"

"Told your sister," He chuckled nervously, "The burgers there are crap. Heard some pretty good things about this place."

"OK, well, take a look at the menu. I don't have all day."

Fumbling, Zeke opened the over-sized laminated booklet. The top of the first page exclaimed the Burger of the Day, with appetizers and lunch meals below. He could feel her eyes on him, felt her scowl. Was he sweating? God, there were so many things to choose from, but with help from his nerves, he just blurted out the first thing on the burger section.

"I-I'll have a cheeseburger."

"Alright," She wrote it down in her notepad, "You want fries with that?"

"Uh, sure."

She lifted her eyes from the paper, "And to drink?"

Shit, he hadn't even considered a drink, "P-Pepsi."

"Is Coke okay?"

"Yes."

Putting her pencil back on her ear, she grinned, "Coming right up."

As she stepped back into the kitchen, Zeke let out his breath. His heartbeat drummed in his ears, giving him a headache. The room was almost silent. Louise, previously uninterested, perked up. Why the hell was Zeke here? He seemed pretty nervous, why was he acting like this? She decided to investigate. She walked over, sat down beside him. Zeke jumped, then smiled at the small girl. She leaned towards him.

"You're here for a burger, huh?" Louise pressed.

"You got that right!"

"Just a burger?"

"Uh, yeah, j-just a burger." He laughed.

"No other reason? No ulterior motives?"

"No! Jeez, get outta my face."

She glowered, there was no way she was going to get anything out of him like this. She'd have to try something else. "You know, Zeke? You're sweating a bunch."

He looked away, "It's hot."

Raising her eyebrows, she smirked, "It's hot? Maybe it's not the weather."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"I think you're not here for an _it,_ I think you're here for a _someone._ "

"A _someone?_ That's bull feces."

"Thought that originally. But come on, nobody stutters that much when ordering food. I mean, most people, but you're not those people."

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't I?" She opened her mouth, "Hey, Ti-"

Zeke placed his hand over her mouth, whispered, "Fine, fine, _fine,_ you really want to know?"

She removed his sweat-covered hand, "I want to know _everything,_ Zeke."

"You're right," He looked around, "I'm here to see your sister."

"Tina? Why do you want to see Tina?"

The back door flew open again, Tina holding a plateful of fries and a burger in one hand, a Coke in the other. Zeke did a double take, grinning timidly. The girl placed the plate and cup in front of him, nodded. Zeke blushed so hard his ears were red.

"Thank you ma'am."

Louise knew.

* * *

 _Special thanks to cerealmonster15 on tumblr for giving me this idea. You're super rad!_


End file.
